For biologic studies, atomic force microscopy (AFM) has been prevailing over scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) because it has the capability of imaging non-conducting biologic specimens. However, STM generally gives better resolution than AFM, and we're talking about resolution on the atomic scale. In a recent article, Franz Giessibl (Atomic resolution of the silicon (111)- (7X7) surface by atomic force microscopy, Science 267:68-71, 1995) has demonstrated that atoms can be imaged by AFM.